Feel You
by RoseGoldRomantic
Summary: A Loki x reader based in the Tesseract fic universe! Avengers: Infinity War AU follow-up fic where the snap never happened. NOT CANON to the Tesseract/Lokasenna/What Heroes Do/Fidelity fic series, just a little something to help me deal with IW feels.
1. Chapter 1

Loki and I stood, panting as we watched the Titan slump away from Thor, his gloved hand hitting the ground with a dull thud. Thor marched over, ripping the glove from Thanos' hand, tossing the weapon to Captain Rogers.

"I told you that you'd die for that." Thor breathed, yanking Stormbreaker free from Thanos' chest. Thor collapsed to his knees, breathing deeply in relief, and closing his eyes.

"They have been avenged, brother." Loki said, coming to stand behind Thor. "This day, they smile fondly from Valhalla."

"How?" Thor whispered. "How could you leave us again, with no word of your plan?"

Loki's face fell as Thor spoke, guilt washing over his face as he reached out for my hand.

"I know your tricks preserve you, and in this case, us as well." Thor said, trying to calm down. "But was there no way to tell us your plan? To warn us of what was coming? You had to leave (Y/N) and I with nothing but the memory of you laying dead, your neck snapped?"

"I tried to tell you as best I could." Loki murmured. "My original plan was to take him to earth, away from you. I knew that I would not survive such an ordeal, but I saw no other way to protect you. When I saw that wasn't going to work, I realized that the only true way out would be to distract him, to satisfy him with my death. I had scarce enough time to make sure my protective spell for (Y/N) would hold before I had to focus on Thanos. I alluded back to Svartalfheim, I tried to make you understand without saying directly."

"It pained me immensely to have to watch you both grieve so deeply, so needlessly. But I could not risk coming out until after Thanos had left." Loki sighed, gripping my hand. "Once I was sure that he wasn't returning, the ship exploded, and I could no longer find you once I woke. It wasn't until (Y/N) placed my helm on her own head that I was alerted to your whereabouts. I never wanted to leave you-"

Loki was cut off by Natasha tackling him to the ground, fist raised to electrocute him with her wrist cuffs.

"I've got him! Steve, help me get him…" She paused, looking around at us, "Steve? Thor? Why is no one helping me?"

"Because he's on our side, blondie." Rocket grumbled, toting his gun over his shoulder.

"Is he dead, Steve?" Bucky asked, approaching carefully with his rifle still pointed at the Titan.

Steve simply nodded, breathing heavily and leaning against a tree.

"It looks like it." Steve breathed. Nodding to Loki, he added, "He's also with us now. I wouldn't be here if he hadn't helped me out."

"Are you sure?" Natasha asked, slowly getting off of Loki.

Steve nodded, and I moved to help Loki to his feet.

"What are we going to do with this thing?" Steve said, tossing the gauntlet to the ground.

"We should return the Mind Stone to Vision." Wanda said, her voice wavering. "He does not deserve what has happened."

"I agree." Natasha said. "How are we going to separate the Mind Stone from the gauntlet? How are we going to do that with any of them? They shouldn't be housed all together."

"We can ask Shuri." The man in the panther suit said, joining our group. "If anyone will know how to transfer the stones without damaging them, it will be her."

O~O~O~O~O~O

"So I can relax the bond that the Stones have with the gauntlet," Shuri said, her eyes scanning over several monitors, "but I'm unsure of how to actually remove them. The stones are extremely volatile, and any equipment I would use runs the risk of exciting the stone into activation."

"The stones are obviously intelligent, I mean look at the Mind Stone. It made Vision." Bruce said, gnawing on the end of his glasses. "Would it require a person to hold them, the touch of a living being to prevent them from going berserk?"

"I can't say for sure." Shuri responded, turning away from her monitors. "But your proposal does make a good argument. Who here do we know that has been able to handle an Infinity Stone? They are no small amount of power."

"Strange should be able to handle the Time Stone." Bruce said, "Whenever he gets back."

"Yes, the wizard would be more than able to handle its power." Thor agreed.

"I will take the Mind Stone." Wanda said, "My power is born from it, and I should be able to remove it without any harm."

"The Reality, Soul, and Power stones should be stored separately." Shuri said, "Even alone, they are intensely more powerful than we could ever hope to control. Wanda, do you think that you could remove them as well?"

"I can definitely try." Wanda nodded.

"What of the Space Stone?" Shuri asked, looking around the room. "Do we know of anyone strong enough to hold it?"

"Loki has done so. On numerous occasions." Thor said, patting Loki's shoulder.

"No offense intended, Thor," Steve said, "But given what happened the last time the Tesseract was in Loki's possession here on earth, I think we would prefer to find someone else."

"I understand your concern." Loki said, "However, I don't think you will find anyone else that has any experience in that area."

"Except me." I said, stepping forwards. "I have held the Tesseract in me before."

"That was only a portion of its power." Loki stressed, "The stone itself is exponentially more powerful, it would destroy you."

"I'm willing to risk that so we can end this." I said, squeezing Loki's hand. "Besides, I'm only taking the stone out, I'm not keeping it."

"Exactly." Shuri said. "I'll start relaxing the bonds between the stones and the gauntlet. Wanda, are you ready?"

Wanda nodded, stepping towards the glove as the rest of us backed away. Cases were set out for the removed stones, each one covered in the same Vibranium that made Cap's shield. Vision's lifeless body was brought in, a new Stone placement having been fashioned from Vibranium.

Shuri altered some settings on her monitor, nodding to Wanda. The Stones gave off a dull glow, and Wanda began to use her magic to remove one stone after another. Each stone was delicately lifted from the gauntlet, starting with the Power Stone. Wanda began to tire, lifting the Mind stone lastly from the gauntlet, and gently placing it inside Vision's forehead.

Shuri moved to begin re-attaching the Stone to Vision, and Wanda looked to me.

"I will try with the Space stone as well, but I am tiring." she said. "Have the case ready, please."

I nodded, picking up the only empty case left, holding it open next to Wanda. Her hands trembled, and her brow was furrowed, a light shimmer of sweat appearing. She moved her hands, the magic not quite strong enough to lift the stone from its resting place inside the glove. With one last, heaving effort, Wanda tried to remove the stone. The stone remained in the gauntlet as Wanda hobbled over to the table Vision laid on, sinking to the ground in exhaustion.

I looked to Loki and Thor, smiling to them as I reached out to grasp the Tesseract. Loki moved to stop me, but Thor restrained him with a strong grip on his shoulder.

I placed my hand on the Stone, and the familiar heat pulsed through me. My fingers grasped the edges of the Stone, and I pulled it out of the gauntlet. I balanced the Stone in my palm, gazing into its glowing blue center, smiling slightly.

"See? I told you I could do it." I said, walking towards the case the stone was meant to be placed in. The stone never made it into the case.

As I took my steps, the stone melted into my hand, disappearing into my skin as its flaming energy seeped through my bloodstream.

"Oh no."


	2. Chapter 2

The burning sensation crept up through my arm, intensifying as it travelled. Tears welled in my eyes as I struggled to remain upright. The heat continued to my heart, where it instantly spread to my entire body. I cried out, my vision completely whited out by the power that was seeping into every cell of my body. I faintly heard voices cry out in concern, but even that was soon drowned out by the rushing in my ears. The breath was knocked from me, and I grew dizzy and lightheaded.

My sight began to return, slowly, the edges of my vision still saturated in white. A figure was kneeling beside me, trying to get me to respond. When had I ended up on the ground?

The pain still reverberated through my body, and I cried silently. My throat felt dry, my eyes stinging. As tears continued to fall, two hands very gently touched my own. Peace flooded through me, and though the pain continued, I felt like I could breathe again. I felt my body being lifted, and exhaustion set in as I was carried out of the lab. A familiar scent filled my nostrils, and I curled in closer to Loki as I lost consciousness.

I woke in a large bed, silk sheets drawn up over my chest. A dull headache throbbed in the back of my head, a pang of discomfort pulsing with every beat of my heart. A small weight pressed on my chest, and I opened my eyes to see Loki's arm draped over me, his sleeping form illuminated only by the moonlight pouring through the window. His face was peaceful and serene, the dirt and grime of battle cleaned away. His raven black hair shone in the light, and I gently pushed strands out of his face, pressing my lips to his forehead.

"Hmmmm." He hummed pleasantly, pulling me in closer to him. "Hello, love." he said sleepily, nuzzling my neck. "Are you feeling alright?"

"Other than a headache, and still feeling tired, I think I'm fine." I whispered in response, "What happened?"

"The stone seems uncontrollably drawn to you." Loki sighed. "Shuri ran very quick tests to make sure that you were alright, but the Space stone has found host within you. It's power seems to thrive inside every fiber of your being, unlike before when the fraction of power simply flowed in your bloodstream. As a result, no one knows how to withdraw it without harming you."

"Back to square one, huh?" I mused.

"So it would seem." Loki whispered, pressing his lips to my forehead. "I'm so sorry."

"What for?" I responded. "There's no danger of a portal being closed, no timeline for this issue to be taken care of, and you're not the one that made me pick up the stone. If I remember right, you actually told me not to."

"I'm the reason you are in this whole mess in the first place." he mumbled. "I'm the reason you were ever exposed to the Tesseract in the first place. My selfish, regrettable actions always seem to put you in harm's way."

"You're also the reason I lived in Asgard, found a home there. The reason I was able to learn so much about things beyond earth." I said, tilting his chin up, forcing him to look at me. "Everything in our lives that has happened, led me to you. Our choices, our regrets, everything. When we're together, everything that I've gone through, everything you've gone through, it all seems so worth it to me. If you had done one thing differently, I might never have met you, never have fallen in love with you. Is that so regrettable a thing?"

Loki didn't answer, his eyes searching my own as indecipherable thoughts ran through his head. Before I could ask him for his answer, his lips were on mine, hungrily moving down to my neck. I shuddered, goosebumps running down my entire body. I lifted a leg to wrap around him and draw him closer, and he paused long enough to utter a single, raspy sentence.

"How could I _ever_ regret loving someone so utterly beautiful?" he said, breathless and hungry.

We didn't sleep much that night.

When the sun rose that morning, neither of us had bothered to replace our clothing. The sun gave Loki a warm glow, and I delayed my shower as long as I could just to enjoy him. In the end, he wound up showering with me, both sharing the water and showering me with small kisses.

The warm sun of Wakanda was refreshing, and the first real peace I'd ever felt since New York settled into my soul. Loki was with me, and everyone was alright for the first time. Thor was overjoyed to know that Loki was still alive, though he had quite a bit of anger at first. The rest of the Avengers, or at least those who had been around for the battle of New York, were still wary of Loki, but Steve's change of heart seemed to comfort them some.

Vision had made a full recovery, much to Wanda's happiness. Everything and everyone seemed to be settling into place. Iron man returned from Titan with the rest of the guardians, Gamora released from the soul stone's entrapment. A new addition, Spider-Man, also came with them, and Peter Parker immediately kindled a friendship with Loki. Peter was fascinated with Loki's magical abilities, and Loki found himself growing fond of the teenager.

Later that week, Shuri intercepted a message, calling Thor, Loki and I immediately to her lab. Val was alive, Korg and the remaining Asgardians were safe, but stranded in space since their pods had run out of fuel.

"How can we get out there?" I asked, "We don't have the technology to make such long journeys in space."

"But we know someone who does!" Thor exclaimed. "Where is the Rabbit? I have need of him and his crew."

"Rocket?" Loki asked.

"Yes! The Rabbit!" Thor confirmed, smiling.

"Thor, he's a raccoon." Loki corrected, rolling his eyes.

"Don't let him hear you say that." Quill said, strolling in with Gamora. "My little pager thingy went off and I figured it must mean something. What's up?"

"I need you and your friends to help me." Thor said, "The remnants of my people are stranded, with no way of coming here. I need your help to not only get me to them, but bring them home."

"What's in it for- OW!" Quill said dramatically, rubbing his arm where Gamora had punched him. "I mean, that sounds doable. When do we need to leave? I've got a lot of music to catch up on…"

"We leave as soon as your ship would be ready." Thor said, "My people need me."


	3. Chapter 3

"We'll have to stop somewhere to get a bigger ship." Quill sighed. "There's barely enough room on my ship for all of us, much less all these people we're going to save."

"How long would such a thing take?" Loki asked.

"Not horribly long. Since Xandar got destroyed, we'll have to go to one of their outposts and hope that's still in one piece." Quill responded, "I'll go tell the rest of my crew."

Quill left, Gamora following behind him. I looked to Thor, whose spirits seemed to have been lifted by the news.

"We may have lost much, brother," Thor said, clapping Loki on the shoulder, "But the day now approaches that we might have some of it back."

Loki simply smiled at his brother, nodding as we left the lab. Loki's hand gripped my own tightly, his body seeming tense now as we walked to our room.

"What's wrong?" I asked, "Aren't you excited about your people being alright? Aren't you happy to go get them here safely?"

"I am." he said, his tone strained as he closed the door behind us. "I am most happy to know that some of Asgard survived Thanos' attack."

"Then what's wrong?" I pressed, forcing him to look at me, "Why are you acting so strangely?"

Loki looked at me for the longest time, his eyes staring into mine as his mind searched for the words he wanted to say.

"I don't think you should come with on this journey." he said, his voice wavering.

His words hit me so suddenly, I stumbled back slightly to sit on our bed. "You don't want me to come with?" I breathed, emotion swelling in my throat.

"That's not what I meant." he said, his volume increasing slightly. "I would love for you to come more than anything. I don't think you should, though."

"So I'm supposed to just sit at home, do _nothing_ while you and Thor head off on some grand adventure to bring back our people?" I exclaimed, my anger and shock causing me to raise my voice to a shout. "I lived in Asgard _for years_ , I made _my home_ among 'your people'. I mourned the loss of Asgard with you, I mourned your _and_ your people's death with your brother. Val is my friend, and they're my people too! I should be able to be a part of bringing them home!"

"You're _not coming_!" Loki shouted back, tears welling in his own eyes.

We stood in our room, staring at each other angrily, our breathing heavy.

"Shouting at each other from across the room doesn't count as having a conversation about our feelings." I said, bitterness seeping through my tongue.

The anger slowly melted from Loki's face, and completely left me. Tears silently dripped down my face, and Loki sat next to me.

"I still don't think you should come." Loki said softly, placing his hand on my leg. "And before you protest, let me explain myself. I know that you've been through a lot with our people, and you deserve to see them safe.I know that you would do anything to get them home safely, even if it meant losing your own life. But this trip could be very dangerous, and perhaps this is selfish, but I can't lose you again."

"You mean like _I've done_ several times already?" I asked, my tone biting, even through my tears. Loki's face faltered, and I sighed. "I can take care of myself, Loki. I can't bear to lose you again either, but there are some things that even my love for you can't stand in the way of. The Asgardians on that ship did nothing wrong, and they deserve happiness. If I can be the one to help bring them that, it would be the highest honor."

"You're not going to change my mind." he said. "So we can talk about something else now."

"It's a good thing I don't need _your permission_ to do anything." I responded, crossing my arms and throwing myself back onto the bed. Loki sighed, groaning as he laid down beside me.

"Promise me you'll at least try to see my point of view?" he pleaded.

"I guess." I resigned, sighing. After a pause, I held out my hand to hold his. "I love you."

"And I you." he answered, taking my hand and stroking it with his thumb. He remained laying with me, his eyes saturated with soft warmth. I smiled, squeezing his hand. He returned my smile, raising an eyebrow. "Now, let's enjoy the time we have together here. I can think of something…"

"Way ahead of you." I snickered, rolling over to straddle him. "The door is locked, right?"

There was a clicking sound behind me, and Loki smiled. "It is now."

The Guardians were ready two days later, Quill happily humming along to the new songs that Shuri had helped him put on his mp3 player.

"You won't stay here?" Loki asked me wistfully.

"Not a chance." I said, reaching up on my tiptoes to place a kiss on his lips. I turned, stepping up the ramp into the ship, Thor walking alongside me.

"I like her, brother." Thor grinned, teasing Loki as all three of us entered the ship. "I'm glad you chose her. She seems the perfect counterbalance to your rather dubious nature. Although.." he trailed off, patting my back as the ship's doors closed, "She can definitely hold her own with no problems. She's every bit as stubborn as both of us."

"I know." Loki said, looking at me from across the cabin. I shrugged in response, sitting down in one of the seats as Quill announced that we would be taking off.

"Let us know if anything goes haywire while you're gone." Stark's voice said from the pilot's console, "I'll try to whip something up to go out and help you guys. I might be able to- Peter! Put that down!"

"I'm sorry mister Stark…" Peter's voice echoed in the background, only to be drowned out by Tony's.

"Put it back. Shuri, I thought I told you…" Tony's transmission cut out, and Thor chuckled.

"If you all are seated, which you should be by now," Quill said, "We'll be shooting off here in a second. Quick pit stop on the Xandar outpost to borrow a big ass ship, then we'll be off to wherever your friends are."

Loki and Thor sat down, and we all buckled ourselves in. The initial speed was not as much of a jolt as I had thought it would be, and we quickly reached our cruising speed. My stomach did not quite seem to agree with the jump, and I sat breathing deeply to calm my stomach.

"We should reach the outpost in an hour or so." Rocket said, "So make yourselves comfortable."

"Thank you, Rabbit." Thor said, standing.

Loki and Rocket both rolled their eyes, Rocket focusing on piloting the ship as the stars flew by. Loki and I stood up, going over to a table to sit by a window. The stars continued to streak by, evoking memories of travelling by Bifrost.

"You won't have to worry about me." I said with a small smile, trying to ease the tension. "I've learned to take care of myself, if you don't remember."

"You have." Loki responded, returning my smile. "And I'm proud of you. But you shouldn't have to. You shouldn't have to worry about things like that at all."

"(Y/N) will be fine, brother." Thor said with a laugh. "She held her own against Hela's forces, and she trained with Valkyrie! There's nothing to be worried about."

"I suppose not." Loki said, chuckling quietly.

Rocket's arrival estimate proved correct, and an hour later Quill shouted back to us that we were arriving. We all crowded towards the helm of the ship, anxious to take in the outpost. When we dropped out of our cruising speed, it felt like the wind had been knocked out of me.

The outpost was devoid of life, every light dark and every street empty.

"Well this isn't good."


	4. Chapter 4

I AM SO SORRY THIS TOOK OVER SIX MONTHS I PROMISE I AM WORKING ON MORE!

O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O

"Can you read any life forms?" Thor asked, leaning forward.

"This ship doesn't have that capability." Quill said, messing with his control monitors.

"Not since you broke it." Rocket complained, rolling his eyes.

"Nobody asked you, Rocket!" Quill countered, gesturing to the outpost. "What are we supposed to do now?"

"There are still ships everywhere." I said, pointing to the outpost. "We find one that works, and we take it. The place looks completely deserted."

"We should still be cautious." Thor warned, "There may be looters still hiding."

We touched down, each of us slowly fanning out to survey our surroundings. Loki, Thor, and I stayed fairly close to each other, and the others in their own groups.

"I don't like this." Loki muttered, "It's too quiet."

"Maybe Thanos came by here on his way to get the power stone." I said, "Or maybe on his way back?"

"In any case," Thor added, kicking a discarded helmet aside, "Let's find this ship we need so we can leave quickly."

The longer we looked around, the more anxious all of us became. Loki eventually brought his knives out, walking closer and closer to me the further along that we went. More and more debris littered the street, evidence of the sudden disappearance of the outpost's inhabitants. Pieces of armor laid discarded on the ground, empty helmets staring up at us with hollow eyes.

"Where did they all go?" I asked, "Did they really all escape? With as quickly as Thanos and his goons worked, I doubt that everyone made it out alive."

"Given the absence of any bodies, I'm assuming they made it all out." Loki said, "Though, admittedly, that doesn't mean much."

"There's a ship the same size as the one Thanos destroyed!" Thor exclaimed, happily pointing to the large vessel in the near distance. "As long as it's still in operating order, we can use that one to gather the rest of Asgard and bring them home."

"Then let's get it and get out of here." I said, my stomach still unsettled from our trip, "All of this silence is making me anxious."

We crested the small hill that the ship sat upon, Quill and the rest of the crew joining us.

"The boarding ramp is down, and the doors are wide open." Quill said, activating his helmet. "This smells like trouble."

"I do not smell anything." Drax mumbled, "You can tell what trouble smells like? Does it smell like fish?"

"Drax, come on, we've worked on this!" Quill groaned, ascending the ramp slowly.

My eyes took a minute to adjust to the dark interior, but once they had, I wished they hadn't.

Bodies lay strewn across the floor, in varying stages of decay. Blank eyes stared forward, fearful expressions still plastered on their faces. My stomach, still upset from our space travel, decided it had endured enough. My lunch ended up all over the ground outside the ship.

"Is there any sign of who it was?" Gamora asked, turning over a body to look for a cause of death.

"There's no signs of a struggle anywhere," Quill said, "They must've gotten jumped by whoever did this really quickly. They all look like they're from the same crew. "

"Except these." Rocket said, gesturing to a few bodies that lay face down on the ground, laserfire scorches covering their clothing. "These guys fought and lost, and they don't look like the rest. Did they get here after?"

"If they did, what killed them?" Quill countered.

"Or who?" Loki frowned, stepping closer to me.

A slight breeze drifted through, dust blowing about. I remained in the entrance to the ship, my stomach still turning. There was a noise resembling a footstep behind me, and every hair on my body stood up.

"What was that?" I whispered urgently, frozen in place.

"I believe that it's the 'who'" you're looking for." a strange voice called out from behind me.

Our group turned to look, everyone raising their weapons to meet the weapons raised at us. Several enemies stood at the bottom of the ramp, their approach silent until the very last moment. Their apparel was disheveled, but their weapons clean and humming. The central most figure stepped forward, lowering his weapon and smirking.

"Hello, Starguy."


	5. Chapter 5

"Korath?" Quill asked, obviously taken aback, "First of all, for the last time, it's STAR LORD. Secondly, didn't Drax-"

"While the removal of my cybernetic appendage was painful-" Korath shot a stabbing look to Drax, who was actively being restrained by Gamora. "It was not enough to stop me from finding you again, Star Man. I will not be foolish enough to attempt to combat you alone again."

"It's STAR LORD!" Quill groaned, "Is it really that hard to-"

"Is now really the best time for this?" I hissed back, internally groaning as more bandits crept into view.

"You will ALL come with us while I decide what to do with you." Korath snarled. "And if you so much as think of any funny business, you will all regret it. You might have stopped Thanos in all his wrath, but I will ensure you do not live to attempt such things again."

We all shuffled out of the ship, Loki making sure to walk as close to me as possible. The unsettled feeling in my stomach had yet to leave, and I felt as if I could become sick again at any moment.

"Are you alright?" Loki asked me quietly, his voice low and soft. "You don't look well."

"I'll be fine." I replied, "The jump just upset my stomach and it's still not settled. How are we going to fix this?" I gestured vaguely to our surroundings, as we were led further away from both our ship, and the ship we had intended to take.

"I have a plan." Loki whispered even more softly. "Thor should understand it. I can only hope the rest don't make fools of themselves long enough for the two of us to complete it."

"One can only hope…" I trailed off, watching Drax continuing to stare daggers at Korath.

The more we walked along the dusty, abandon road, the more nervous I grew. The eerie silence that threatened to swallow even our footsteps was suffocating, and it grew stronger the more that we walked. A cloudy haze began to form above us, enough to obscure our view of the sky and the stars beyond.

The ships in the shipyard grew fewer and further in-between, buildings looming at insane heights above our heads. Even through the cloud cover, they cast an intense shadow, as if warning of more danger ahead. We entered a courtyard, dusty and empty.

"We stop here." Korath spat, turning to us. "Before we get any closer to my ship, we'll be relieving you all of your weapons. I'll take them from you, and you'll walk slowly over there." he gestured to another smaller group of his men just beyond the center of the courtyard. "If this all goes without protest, no one gets hurt."

"Come on, man, this is bullcrap." Quill whined, the first to have his weapons taken away. "I just upgraded those things with that vibranatin too!"

"Vibranium." Gamora rolled her eyes.

"That's what I said!" Quill said, gripping his pistols tightly as Korath tried to reach for them.

"All the more reason to make sure you are separated from them." Korath answered, yanking them from Peter.

Drax protested the strongest, again needing restraint from not only the enemy bandits, but the Guardian's words of caution as well. The muscular alien nearly snarled at Korath, "You will not be so lucky a second time."

"You say that as if a second time will present itself." Korath smirked, tossing Drax's knives to one of his men.

Thor walked over to join the group, given that his new axe rested safely in Quill's ship. Rocket was cleared of weapon after weapon, leaving me to wonder what kind of pocket dimension he was carrying everything in.

The closer Korath got to Loki and I, the more Loki moved to stand between myself and the man. As Groot was shoved over to join the rest of the Guardians, Loki and I were the only ones left.

Korath searched Loki, only to find no physical weapon.

"Where are the knives?" Korath demanded. "I saw you had knives. Give them to me."

"As you can see, I don't have any now." Loki retorted. "And neither does she."

Loki took my hand, attempting to walk towards the group.

"Give me the knives, snake." Korath hissed. "I will not ask again."

"Brother…" Loki trailed off, trying to communicate with Thor with only his eyes.

Thor nodded, flickers of electricity escaping his fingertips. "I suggest you and your friends leave, now." Thor said, stepping forward, away from the group.

Korath's men trained their rifles on Thor as more electricity crackled at his fingertips.

"You think me a fool?" Korath said, seemingly unafraid of the god of thunder. "I know who you are, son of Odin. You have no weapon. You will fall the same as the ones we found on that ship."

"That's where you're wrong, _wandought_." Loki chuckled. "My brother needs no weapon to defeat all of you."

Thor's eyes began to glow, and Loki grabbed me, shielding me with his body. As a massive strike of lightning electrified the courtyard, a knife materialized in Loki's other hand.

"Stay close." Loki said, his eyes searching my face.

I nodded, pulling my own weapon out.

Stunned by the blast of light and electricity, the bandits and Korath staggered about, trying to shield their eyes from any more overexposure. The lightning strike had caught the attention of the bandits that were in Korath's ship, and they began to flood into the courtyard amidst the chaos.

Loki and I remained back to back, dispatching the bandits that approached us as a team, knives slashing, my short sword gleaming in the dim light.

"Can we get back to what we were doing?" Rocket hollered above the din, having retrieved his weapons. "This has been fun and all, but I want to get home already."

"Shoot first, talk later!" Drax bellowed.

We all made our way closer to another large ship, slightly smaller than the one we had intended to take, but big enough for our needs. Rocket accessed the keypad to lower the loading gate, his small hands flying across buttons faster than humanly possible.

"Quill, go back to the ship! I'll stay here and pilot this ship." Rocket shouted, "Meet us at the coordinates to pick up the Asgardians."

"Gotcha." Quill nodded.

"Hey you!" he shouted at at Korath, who while injured, was still approaching us. "I'm going to get away again, how does that make you feel you cybernetic psycho?"

Shouting out in frustration, Korath and most of his goons chased after the Guardians, leaving Loki, Thor, Rocket, and I with only a handful to deal with before boarding our new ship. The boarding ramp lowered, and we all backed slowly onto it as we dispatched the last of the bandits. We ran onto the bridge, the ramp closing behind us as Rocket started the engine.

"Hold on to your lunch, lady and gents." Rocket said, flipping switches as the ship began to lift up from the ground. "This is going to be a bumpy ride."

I sat down in the nearest seat, fumbling with the seat buckles as Loki sat beside me. Just as I finished the final snap on my seat buckle, the ship lurched forward into space.


End file.
